"Hi, and welcome to my blog. This is a space dedicated to make meaning-making more mainstream again."
Words by Hunter Ferner
Photo by Sam Turley
I remember taking a social media class as a part of my communication studies in college, and we once had a well-known photographer give a guest lecture on the business of journalism and photography. His work had been published in highly reputable local journals as well as big news agencies like NBC and the TODAY Show. I was fortunate enough to chat with him one-on-one and pick his brain about the business of storytelling and advertising online, and that's when he told me something I knew deep down in my heart but was too afraid to hear from someone else:
"The future of journalism, of storytelling, and of social media is video," he said. "I would highly recommend, if you haven't already, to start producing more videos on your social media channels if you want to build a bigger following."
In essence, still photography online is dying.
Instead, what's come out of the advent of TikTok, Instagram Reels, and other video-forward platforms is an explosion of creativity and talent that's never been seen before on platforms that used to only promote still photos. The content that's out there nowadays -- which deserves an entire blog post of its own -- is engaging, humorous, and often inspiring. However, I feel like I've been struggling to find where my photography and writing belongs in the mix.
My roots are in photography; photos are how I express myself and capture emotions that I never want to forget. They're also how I share the stories of others, and my connection with photography is something that will never go away. I can't tell you how many times I've experienced something magical in my life and just felt the strongest urge to photograph something from that moment so that its story wouldn't go untold. It happens on a daily basis for me, which is why I've made the recent habit of never leaving the house without a camera and a journal with me. But if the future of social media and how we tell our stories is through short videos and even shorter captions, where does my work belong?
That brings me to where we are today. Hi, and welcome to my blog. This is a space dedicated to make meaning-making more mainstream again (wow, the alliteration). I intend on using this blog to tell longer versions of the stories that continue to fuel my soul -- from cheetah conservation in Zimbabwe to gazing up at the heavens from atop Mauna Kea. Perhaps you've come here from one of my social media channels to read more about a photo I posted, or perhaps the SEO gods have blessed me with your presence through lucky algorithm promotion. However you got here, I'm thankful that you have taken the time to check out my blog and my photography.
In this space, I'll be talking story about the projects I've been working on since I've started traveling the world and living in Hawaiʻi. I've had my fair share of incredible experiences with animals and people all over the world that I've always wanted to share with a larger audience. In a nutshell, this blog is an on-going passion project of mine where I tell stories through engaging and meaningful photography about topics that everyone can resonate with in some way. If you're interested in photography, travel, animal conservation, storytelling, environmentalism, and occasional opinion pieces on journalism and social media, this just might be the place for you.
I’m happy you’re here. Let’s make some magic together.
-h
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